


From the Underside of the Sea

by LunarExo



Category: Octopath Traveler (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Canon-Typical Violence, M/M, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-04-05 07:05:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19043581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LunarExo/pseuds/LunarExo
Summary: For as long as Therion could remember, the sea had called to him.Eventually, he answers.





	From the Underside of the Sea

**Author's Note:**

> Brief emetophobia warning!

For as long as he could remember, the sea had called to him, but Therion knew well the warnings of sailors, heeding their words lest he fall victim to the danger lurking within its murky depths. The ocean, they said, was old and patient, older than the gods themselves. The ocean, they said, had more bodies attached to its name than the most fearsome pirate ever would. If the ocean called to you, there was no escape.

 

Therion had never learned how to swim. As a child, there was nobody standing around, waiting for the opportunity to teach some scruffy orphan how to stay afloat, and he never had the gall to ask any of the sailors loitering around the docks for help—especially when he started thieving from them to keep himself fed and clothed. But it was fine, he told himself. Not knowing how to swim would keep him cautious of the sea, would stop him from giving into the urge to sink his toes into the seafoam and let the tide carry him somewhere far away. 

He wasn’t sure he’d like where it would take him.

 

(In his dreams, he swam with instinctive ease beneath the waves, floating lazily on his back as the surface of the sea rippled above him. The scattered sunbeams warmed his skin, and he basked in its pleasant light. 

An unseen figure floated beside him, their arms brushing companionably, but each time he mustered up the courage to look at them, he’d blink his eyes open to dry land once more, confused and alone.)

 

Pirates didn’t care if you couldn’t swim. After all, a pirate on the sea was a useful thing, but a pirate _in_ the sea? Good as dead. Nothing but another meal to the dark sea. And by now, Therion was all too acquainted with being good as dead. But the pirates were good to him, and while he wasn’t exactly willing to call them a family (once bitten, twice shy, he supposed,) they were still something. Companions. Allies, maybe. And the work, as gruelling as it was, still felt fulfilling in its own right, leaving his bones aching to their very marrow, but his heart emboldened by the collective pride of a lively, eager crew and the fresh smell of saltwater in his nose. As far as things went, he couldn’t complain. 

Standing at the bow of the ship, Therion gazed out towards the horizon, the setting sun bathing the gentle waves of the ocean orange and pink, offset by navy, almost black water. He wondered how deep the ocean floor was here, how far he’d have to sink to be able to dig his toes into the sand, how long the grains he kicked up would have been laying unperturbed before he got there. Would the water be cold? Or would it be warm? Would it welcome him? Embrace him like a wayward child returned home? If he were to just—

He’d fallen further before and lived—

Just once, and then he’d know for sure—

A hand clapped him on the shoulder with such force that he almost did tumble face first into the waves, his breath catching on a gasp of salty sea air. His heart hammered in his chest, fear clutching at him, and when he looked up at the crewmate who’d grabbed him he saw their mirthful grin waver, eyebrows furrowing with concern. “Aye, you look like you just saw Davy Jones himself rise up from the sea lookin’ for repentance. Something happen?”

Immediately he shook his head, forcing his frantic body to settle. “Just startled me, is all.”

There was quiet for a moment, before his companion shrugged, gesturing back at the saloon, “Pat wants to challenge your Stabberscotch title. Winner gets outta kitchen duty for the week.”

He scoffed in response, “Pat only has three fingers, that’s cheating.”

“So you won’t do it?”

Therion shook his head, “of course I’ll do it, and I’ll win.” He looked out at the sea one last time, before turning decisively away, letting himself be led back into the heart of the ship. He missed the parting of a calm sea, the flick of a tail diving back under the water. 

 

(The moon was so beautiful like this, distorted by the shape of the water, its edges shifting with the slow, rhythmic movement of the ocean. Therion reached up, his fingers gliding easily through the warm water, stroking along the swaying edge of its shape.

Another hand reached up, taking his own with lazy familiarity, and he turned his face just in time to meet a pair of eyes, as blue as the sea they floated in.)

 

He woke up on the bow of the ship again. Swaying in the open ocean air, his whole body was tilted forwards, hovering dangerously close to falling overboard. For one brief moment, he thought _finally_. Instead, he clamoured backwards and fell to his knees, his hands landing on the solid (solid, real, not _water_ ,) wood of the boat. The rocking motion of the ship made his stomach lurch as much as the realisation of what he’d almost done. Swallowing the bile that rose in his throat, he grabbed uselessly at the slippery surface of the boat, trying to right himself even as nausea made his head spin.

The boat lurched once, a heavy wave jostling it, and Therion scrambled to his feet just in time to unceremoniously upended the contents of his stomach into the water below, his throat burning with the taste of acid and whiskey. 

One minute of sleep longer, and he may full well have never woken up. The thought made him gag again, helplessly coughing up acid, his eyes watering. The sea had always drawn him in, begged him to sink into it. But never so aggressively, never—

Like it wanted to pull him under. 

A chill ran down his spine, and Therion scrambled back into the ship, scared to leave himself exposed to the open ocean air for any longer. When he settled back into his sleeping quarters, he hesitated a moment before grabbing a length of rope, typing his own wrist firmly to his hammock. 

When he slept, he did not dream.

 

“All crew to the port, we’re being boarded!” The rallying cry of their captain had every pirate raring to go, a messy battle cry filling the air before they rushed to meet their trespassers head on. Therion was no less eager than the rest of the crew, fingers itching where they gripped at the handle of his scabbard, the smell of gunpowder and clank of metal blades pumping adrenaline hard through his veins. 

He wasn’t much for strength—his stature short and his strength somewhat lacking—but Therion more than made up for it in his speed and technique, out maneuvering men twice his size with little more than some flashy movements and quick feet. It thrilled him, laughter bubbling from his lips with each enemy he dispatched, their bodies falling down to the murky depths below, and a thought bubbled to mind, quiet, persistent, asking,

asking what if he were to fall as well,

the water was so dark, so deep, he’d never have to come up, he could lie forever among the sand, watching the sun from beneath the waves, not a worry in the world,

and beside him would be blue, blue eyes—

The blunt side of a blade struck him across the head, and Therion’s eyes closed before he even hit the water, the sensation of falling near nostalgic. _I’ve been here before_ , he thought, and then thought little else, mind going blissfully blank the moment his back crashed into the roaring sea below. 

 

Lungs burning, saltwater rubbing his throat raw, flooding into him with every involuntary gasp, his last breath of air rising up, up, up to the surface while he sank further down, the sunlight fading further from view as the sea overtook him,

and swallowed him whole.

**Author's Note:**

> IM HALFWAY THRU THE SECOND HALF BUT I REALISED MAY ENDS _TODAY_ SO I MUST PROVIDE........ WHAT I HAVE FINISHED.......... which is not even a lot compared to the second half but _AAAAAAAAAAAAA_
> 
> pls comment and kudos if u enjoy okay thank u <3 also as always [cytheri discord real](https://discord.gg/vudxtNs)


End file.
